Hurley: I see dead people, dude.

At exactly 9 p.m. tonight our house went into “Lost” lock-down mode.  The videogames got shut off. The cell phones were turned to vibrate. Our annoying dog was banished to the garage. And the lights went dark. Finally, yes, finally, our favorite island drama was back and we weren’t about to put up with any distractions.

Oh, and what a gripping, emotionally satisfying way to start. On the heels of last season’s stunning flash-forward, we again were plunged into the future. But, hold on now: This was a flasback-within-a-flash-forward. By that, I mean we, indeed, were on mainland terra firma, but before Jack went all crazy and grew his beard. Now we learn that Hurley also got off the island — and he’s crazy.

In fact, we get the impression that six castaways made it iff the island as Hurley refers to the “Oceanic 6″ after leading the cops on a wild car chase.  Once again, the “Lost” producers have raised new questions before answering all the old ones. Fans undoubtedly will go into a frenzy trying to figure out exactly who makes up the other half of “Oceanic 6.” Read the rest of this entry »

Just one request for the “American Idol” producers: Can we dispense with those shots of Simon, Randy and Paula arriving at the audition sessions? You know, the ones that show them getting out of limos or riding the escalators or moving through hotel lobbies? We know what they look like by now. We know what limos look like.  

In fact, we know what a lot of this looks like. The feeling of sameness has set in. The same sights. The same sounds. Things are dragging and I can hardly wait for Hollywood Week to get here. Read the rest of this entry »

When we last saw Michael Emerson’s Ben Linus on “Lost,” he was warning Jack that “every single living person on this island will be killed” if Jack called in that mysterious freighter. Jack blew him off, so now the boat is on its way and a rescue could be imminent. Or not.

Emerson took some time to chat about his enigmatic character and Season 3 of “Lost.” (This is an extended version of the interview in today’s Times, with, as they say, bonus material):

Q: What was your reaction to last season’s startling flash-forward?

A: Those pages in my script were blank, so I wasn’t aware of it until it aired. And I was confused like everyone else. It was like, “What’s going on here? What’s with that beard on Jack?” Then, when everything finally came together, it blew my mind. I just sat there thinking, this is a stroke of genius. What an inspired piece of writing. … When we were shooting the episode, you could see that Matthew (Fox) was really excited about something, but he couldn’t talk about it. … Read the rest of this entry »

Goth girl Sarah Whitaker wonders where her broom went.

There was exactly one time in my entire life that I found myself wanting to go to Omaha, Nebraska.

It was many years ago when my alma mater qualified for the College World Series, which is annually played there. I didn’t make it and I haven’t given much thought to Omaha since — until last night when the “American Idol” circus pulled into town. Nedless to say, I wasn’t expecting much. 

Surprise, surprise. Corn country would up giving us the most entertaining “Idol” audition show of the season so far. After arriving late, Paula was back to being her good ol’ loopy self. Ryan briefly tried judging (trading spots with Paula). We had a female arm-wrestler who challenged Simon (He wussed out), a goth girl with a wicked laugh and a sob story about a girl estranged from her dad. Most of all, we had some quality singers. Read the rest of this entry »

Tom Sinkovitz, yet another refugee from beleaguered KRON, has joined NBC11, it was announced this afternoon.

Sinkovitz will serve as a political reporter and fill-in anchor for NBC11 News, according to station spokesperson Meredith Smith.

Sinkovitz’s career began with the Armed Forces Vietnam Network when he was in Saigon in 1969. Before coming to the Bay Area 18 years ago, he anchored and reported in Pennsylvania, Cincinnati, Baltimore and Atlanta.

Sinkovitz was last seen as Pam Moore’s co-anchor on KRON’s late-night newcasts.

Do you get the feeling that there are some people in Hollywood — particularly actors — who are secretly celebrating the fact that “The Sopranos” has ended its run? After all, they probably figure that they now might have a better shot at some awards-show hardware.

“The Sopranos” dominated the television portion of the 14th Screen Actors Guild Awards last night as James Gandolfini and Edie Falco won for Best Actor and Actress in a drama, and the “Sopranos” cast captured the prize for top ensemble in a drama.

It was the fourth win for that awards-hog Gandolfini and the third for Falco. I was surprised to hear, though, that the ensemble victory was only the second for the “Sopranos” gang. Tell me, who was better than that bunch? Read the rest of this entry »

All I can say after watching an awful hour of  “American Idol” auditions from Charleston, S.C. is that I hope to God the South doesn’t rise again.

Oh, it was bad. Unlike the uplifting San Diego show on Tuesday, this episode started off with three straight rejections, which set the tone for the night. Not only were the Charleston singers mostly crummy, they were surly. Aretha Codner, for example, didn’t come close to living up to her namesake. Nevertheless, she bickered with the judges and insisted, “I have an amazing voice.” Shortly after came a guy named Joshua, who completely obliterated  “And I’m Telling You” from “Dreamgirls,” and then after getting bounced, had the nerve to say “Idol” is “fake and rigged.” That had Simon shooting him some death-ray glares.

The producers deserve some of the blame for our agony. Yes, only 23 people advanced to Hollywood from Charleston, compared to 31 from San Diego. But we saw only four of the golden ticket holders. Why are they withholding so many of the talented singers from us? 

Read the rest of this entry »

The TV Gods took mercy on us Tuesday night. Not only did “American Idol” land in gorgeous San Diego, one of my all-time favorite cities, the show was cut down to a single, crisply rendered hour. I practically ran up and left sloppy smooches all over my Mitsubishi big screen.

And for the most part, it was a feel-good episode, dominated by quality singers (Way to represent, SoCal!) and heart-melting stories. There was Perrie Cataldo, a young father raising a 4-year-old son singlehandedly after the death of his wife. There was David Archuleta, a charming 16-year-old who has overcome vocal paralysis to make it to Hollywood. And there was the touching story (left for last by producers) of Carly Smithson, a young woman from Ireland who actually got a golden ticket two years ago, but had to drop out of the competition because of visa problems.

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T.K. and Rachel ran away with the million bucks – proof that nice folks can finish first. They rarely disagreed and never engaged in mud slinging with one another. As T.K. said, “We were able to run the entire race without compromising our relationship.” Aspiring runners take note: winning this race doesn’t require decimating your partner along the way. T.K. and Rachel deserved to win. Then again, so did Ron and Christina. And Don and Nick. That’s what made this race so great. In a dozen “Amazing Races” I’ve never seen three finalists with rooting value quite like this season. In a sense, they all won something.

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Remember the era of the ’80s daytime supercouple? Luke and Laura, Frisco and Felicia, Bo and Hope, Patch and Kayla…and Angie and Jesse, soap’s first and (really) only black supercouple. 

Angie made her first appearance back on “All My Children” Friday. And Jesse, who “died,” is also coming back. I am looking forward to how they explain his resurrection. Jesse died in Angie’s arms and had an open casket funeral. At the time, it was  a big deal because there was actually a body viewers could see – no chance he was coming back to life. 

 Check out this promo from ABC. It really makes me remember those days when I’d come home from school and watch with my mom and sisters.